From Ambulance Driver To Thriving Entrepreneur
Lesedi Mkhutshwa | Monday May 22, 2017 15:08
Operating under Serowe Canvas and Tents, the business manufactures a range of tents, camping equipment, truck and tournie covers, canvas and turpullin products, upholstery and others.
Serowe Canvas and Tents is located next to Rasebolai post office.
In an interview with Business Monitor, Kgotlaetsile said his company was established in July 2007 and he self funded it with over P20,000 through savings from his monthly salary.
Having been an ambulance driver at Palapye Primary Hospital for over nine years, Kgotlaetsile says he quit so that he could pursue his long-term dream of becoming a businessman.
Kgotlaetsile said even though he had everything planned, his business encountered hiccups but managed to survive with the help of Local Enterprise Authority (LEA).
He said they registered with LEA in 2008 and received interventions such as entrepreneurship development training, records keeping, procurement awareness, customer care and other forms of training, which have created a much greater positive impact in the business as a whole.
He said LEA is also one of their biggest customers, as they once purchased products worth P200,000.
Other customers include the general public, government departments, parastatals and private companies.
The businessman revealed that his monthly earnings differ depending on the orders they receive, but their expenditure is usually P13,000 per month.
He also said his business has a staff complement of seven people.
Kgotlaetsile said the business has not reached its full potential because of poor marketing strategies and lack of business in the area.
“We don’t normally market our business enough which is the reason it is currently struggling to penetrate the market,” he said.
He added that they are going to advertise their business on different media platforms including print and broadcast, distribute flyers and even use Facebook.
He said their competitors include big shopping outlets such as Game, Lobatse Canvas, Kalahari Canvas to name only a few.
The entrepreneur added that they also offer unique services by using different methods of payments such as lay-bye.
Kgotlaetsile urged aspiring entrepreneurs to work hard, and to be patient when they are pursuing their dreams in order to secure riches in the future.